 Wow, what a difference a year makes! Last year at this time for the Texans the sky wasn't falling, it already fell. The Texans were sitting 0-2 after just taking a pounding by both the Eagles and Colts. They were just coming off a draft that had the nation laughing at them for passing on the ESPN hyped Reggie Bush for a little known defensive end out of NC State with the 1st overall pick. The state of Texas was in an uproar for them also passing on the hometown favorite QB Vince Young, who had just guided the University of Texas to their first national championship in 36 years. Many fans in Texas were jumping ship to root for the rival Titans formerly Oilers (the same team that abandoned the state just a few years earlier) in protest to the Texans draft decisions and to follow Vince Young. It was becoming painfully obvious that the Texans really didn't "already have their quarterback" in David Carr as former GM Charlie Casserly kept bloating out before the draft whenever asked about Vince Young. That "little known defensive end from NC State" Mario Williams looked lost in the preseason and faired no better by week 2. Reggie Bush was filming Madden commercials thanking the Texans for passing on him (as he slips on his Saints hat), and the list goes on. The worst part of it all was the Texans looked doomed with no end in sight. The light at the end of the tunnel looked like a freight train coming to roll over any hopes that even the most optimistic Texans fan had for this team to be competitive anytime in the next few seasons. The future looking bleak was an understatement. Now let's fast forward one year later ...
The Texans are now 2-0 and looking "for real". If you are any kind of fan you probably have already seen the game this weekend or read about it on any one of the hundreds of websites that will recap and break the game down a thousand different ways, so we will spare you that here. However in case you just walked out of a cave, or are one of those fans that decided to trade in your Texans gear for Titans gear and didn't pay the Texans much attention this weekend, you should know that the Texans went on the road and beat a good Carolina team 34-21 to improve to 2-0 on the season. The most amazing thing about that feat was their trailing 14-0 quickly in the 1st Qtr and their ability to bounce back. Even the best of our beloved old Oilers teams probably would have folded in that same scenario. In doing so, the Texans took a HUGE step in this win. That step was so HUGE that they overstepped a couple of steps along the way. The Texans started this season as an NFL laughingstock, normally the next step from there is to be competitive, then to respectibility. However this weekend it looks like the Texans overstepped both competitive and respectibility and went straight to the contender step. Super Bowl contenders? No not yet, but playoff contenders? Why not? So how did they get here so fast?
Several things. First of all the Texans do "have their quarterback" now. Newly acquired Matt Schaub has everything Casserly's quarterback didn't have, confidence, composure, leadership, calmness under pressure, and most importantly the confidence of his teammates. Schaub's play has also redeemed that Texans offensive line that constantly took the rap for the shortcomings of Casserly's guy. The addition of running back Ahman Green is also panning out better than most envisioned. Of course with all these positive additions Andre Johnson is now able to show what he can do on a good team. Now on the other side of the ball, things are just as positive. All those high round draft picks are starting to pan out. This coming as a relief to many Texans fans since at one point it looked like it might not play out that way. The Texans defense has looked strong in both outings playing with passion, wreaking havoc on the field and causing turn overs. Last week Mario Williams had his break out game with 2 sacks, 5 tackles, and 1 fumble recover for a TD. This week it was rookie DT Amobi Okoye having a stellar game recording his first sack of his NFL career. Despite the injuries, the secondary has looked sharp for the most part with Dunta Robinson looking like he might have another Pro Bowl season in his young career. The Texans special teams have looked special so far this season with solid efforts from both kicker Kris Brown and newly acquired punter Matt Turk. Rookie WR/PR Jacoby Jones who returned back 2 punts for TDs in the preseason, who almost broke another one vs the Panthers, coupled with Pro Bowler KR Jerome Mathis give the Texans the most dangerous return tandem in the league. Oh, and let's not forget about that guy that wears the head set on the sidelines. Gary Kubiak is starting to get the attention of the talking heads as many are already talking about how he could be in the running for Coach of the Year this season. Need we say more?
What a difference a year makes. Sure, we have a long way to go and the Colts are coming into Reliant this week looking to bring the Texans and their fans back down to Earth. However, the difference between the state of this franchise from last year is night and day. The Texans may still not be a playoff team however if not, that future looks like it could be right around the corner. Oh, and yes, Reggie Bush is still making commercials and while the Texans could have used his 27 yards and 2 fumbles on Sunday, I want to say "You're welcome Reggie" (slipping on my Texans hat while looking at Mario's stats through the first 2 games).
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